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Fredi Gonzalez May Sit Dan Uggla Periodically for Remainder of Season

August 27th, 2012 at 8:39 PM By Jonathan McCullough

With Dan Uggla continuing to struggle mightily over the last few months, Atlanta Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez may opt to sit Uggla from time to time.

The ever-patient Gonzalez usually would keep sticking Uggla in the lineup until he snapped out of his funk. However, on the heels of last season's epic collapse, Gonzalez might not be willing to be as patient this time. He chose to sit Uggla Sunday night against San Francisco Giants' right-hander Tim Lincecum. Uggla is 0-for-10 with six strikeouts against Lincecum in his career.

"Why keep running him out there?" Gonzalez said. "That does not do him any good and it does not do us any good. So we're going to pick our spots with him a little bit."

After hitting two home runs in a four-hit game on June 5, Uggla has a .143 average with five home runs and a .250 slugging percentage over his last 68 games. Other than a 33-game hitting streak last season, Uggla's time with the Braves has largely been a disappointment. However, Uggla's hustle and attitude have remained positive, and his potential big bat could be key for the Braves in the stretch run.

"We need to get him straight," Gonzalez said. "That's a big bat. [Braves hitting coach Greg Walker] feels like we can get him straight and get him going in the right direction."